Certificate of Achievement: Fire Technology

The FireTechnology Certificate of Achievement (COA) option prepares individuals for careers in the fire service and with public/private ambulance providers.  Career occupations include, firefighter, firefighter-engineer, lieutenant, captain, battalion chief, fire prevention specialist, and emergency medical technician. 

This program follows an industry specific curriculum outlined in the United States FireAdministration Fire & Emergency Services Higher Education (FESHE) and State of California Emergency Medical Services Authority (EMSA) programs.  The curriculum provides a strong foundation in basic fire behavior principles, building construction, fire suppression strategies/tactics, firefighter safety, community risk reduction, supervisory/leadership practices, incident management, and emergency medical care delivery. 

Program Learning Outcomes 

Students who receive a degree will be able to:

·       Describe the roles and responsibilities of a firefighter.

·       Describe the roles and responsibilities of an emergency medical technician

·       Describe the basic principles of building construction.

·       Describe the various types of fire protection systems.

 

We expect to graduate 40 student per year with this certificate because it is a pathway to the fire academy program at Merritt College. 

Fire protection is a highly specialized professional field, requiring extensive knowledge and use of scientific principles. The Fire Technology COA teaches successful application of the fundamental principles of fire protection including suppression of fires, rescue, emergency medical services, hazardous materials mitigation, community risk reduction strategies, and pre-planning for fire protection. Designed for direct job entry and promotional advancement, this program provides technical knowledge and the ability to work within an organized system at a fire or other emergency scene. 

Applicants for this program must complete all the coursework with at least a  "C" in each course. 

Course #	Title	Units	Sequence
EMT 211	Emergency Medical Technician-Basic	6	Semester 1
Group A (select four from the following courses)
FISCI 201	Principles of Fire and Emergency Services	3	Semester 1
FISCI 202	Fire Prevention	3	Semester 1
FISCI 203	Building Construction for the Fire Service	3	Semester 2
FISCI 204	Fire Behavior and Combustion	3	Semester 2
FISCI 205	Fire Protection Systems	3	Semester 2
FISCI 206	Principles of Fire and Emergency Services Safety and Survival	3	Semester 2

This certificate can be used as a prerequisite for our fire academy.

There is a similar program at Las Positas and City College of San Francisco. Las Positas works closely with us and German Sierra is in support of this program. City College is too far away for our students to attend.